Suction-cleaner



W. W. ROSENFIELD.

SUCTION CLEANER.

APPLSCATION FILED SEPT. 19. 1916.

1 348,585. Patented Aug. 3, 1920.

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Q I INVENTOR. faith 214,- & Q iii/C217,): 30p M W Z; ATTORNEY.

w. w. ROSENFIELD.

SUCTION CLEANER.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 19, I916 Patented Aug. 3, 1920.

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mzzza'm m W W1 TNESSES: i 3 By 7 W F #[M /(f/& LL11- /uu ATTORNEY W. W.ROSENHELD.

SUCTION CLEANER.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. I9. 1916,

1 ,348,585. Patented Aug. 3, 1920.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

IN V EN TOR. WITNESSES:

Km fr? M.

W A ATTORNEYS.

"justing the nozzle 0 UNITED STATES WILLIAM W. ROSEN'FIELD, OF NEW YORK,N. Y.

SUCTION-CLEANER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 3, 1920.

Application 'filed September 19, 1916. Serial No. 121,077.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM W. Rosanrmni), a citizen of the UnitedStates, resid ing at New York cit in the county of New York and State ofN ew York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inSuction-Cleaners, fully describedand represented in the followingspecification and the accompanying drawings, forming a part of the same.

This invention relates to improvements in suction cleaners, and more.especially to suction cleaners ofthe self-contained type, that is, ofthe kind in which the motor, fan, dirt receptacle and cleaning nozzleare mounted to move together over the surface to be cleaned,although-some of the features of the invention are suitable for use inconnection with other forms of suction cleaning, devices. The inventionaims generally to provide an improved cleaner which shall be efficientin operation and convenient for use for the various purposes for whichit is adapted.

Among the special objects of the invention are the followin :--toprovide a cleaner which shall be e cient in cleaning carpets or surfacesof various character and in takin up threads, fibers and similararticles w ich tend to adhere tothe surface being cleaned; to rovidemeans for adfthe cleaner in relation to the surface to be cleanedaccording to the character of such surface or of the work to be done; toprovide an improved discharge valve to prevent dirt or dust in the dustreceptacle from rei ntering the dis charge conduit; to provide animproved construction of the hand end of the handle rod including animproved mounting for the circuit controlling switch; and to provide animproved nozzle brush of simple and cheap construction which iseflicient in action.

A full understanding of the invention can best be given by a detaileddescription of an illustrative embodiment of the same in the form nowconsidered best, and such a description will now be given in connectionwith the accompanying drawings illustrating such an embodiment of theinvention, and in which:

Figure 1 is a side view in elevation of a self-contained suction cleanerembodying the various features of the invention;

Fig. 1 is a side view of the spring clamp for closing and holding theupper end of the dust bag; f

Fig. 2 is a front sectional elevation the cleaner nozzle and the partscontained therein; a

Fig. 3 is a bottom plan view of the cleaner;

Fig. 4 is an enlar ed sectional view taken on line 4-4 of -1 2 andshowing the nozzle and brush a 'usted to one position in relation to thesurfiice of the ca et;

Fi 4 is a view similar to Fig. 4 but showlng the nozzle and brushadjusted to different positions in relation to the surface of thecarpet;

Fig. 5 is an enlarged partial side elevation of the cleaner nozzle andadjacent parts showing the adjusting means for positioning the nozzle;

Fig. 6 is an enlarged view in section of the upper end of the handle rodshowin the hand grip and the stitch and electrica connections therein;

Figs. 7, 8 and 9 illustrate the details of the brush, and the method ofassembling the parts;

Fig. 10 is an enlar ed sectional view taken on line 10-10 of ig. 1showing the discharge valve;

Fig. 11 is a bottom plan view showing the runners attached to the backof the brush; 7

Fig. 12 is a detail view showing the means for attaching the handle andthe handle locking means to the'cleaner.

Referring to the drawings, the suction cleaner shown has a body formedby a motor casing 10 within which an electric motor is mounted, a fancasin 11 containing a centrifugal fan connected directly with and drivenby the motor and a nozzle 12 extending downward from the front of thefan casing. The nozzle is as usual extended transversely at the bottomtoprovide a comparatively long andnarrow suction inlet opening or-mouthbetween the lips of the nozzle. The body is mounted on a pair of runningwheels 13 and'14 located adjacent and to the rear of the nozzle and apair of rear wheels 15. The cleaner is operated by a pivoted handle rod16 and is provided with a porous dirt rece tacle or ba 17 connected atits lower en with the throat or conduit 18 extending backward from thefan casin the'upper end of the bag being supporte by a connection to theischarge theelevation of the nozzle an upper end of the handle rod. Theend of the discharge conduit to which the bag is connected is aproximately in the axis on which the ban le rod is pivoted, so that nostrain on or undue slackness of the bag results in any position of thehandle rod through its normal range of movement.

The nozzle 12 has an openin 12 shown 'in dotted lines in Fig. 1,provided for attachin the end of a hose leading to a hand tool w en, itis desired to clean furniture, walls etc. which are inaccessible to thenozzle 12, this opening being normally closed by a ivoted cover plate12".

The hand e rod 16 is pivoted to the casing 11 by means of a yoke 16 andpivots 16 as shown in Fig. 12, one of which pivots also holds securely1n place a plate 16 to which the yoke may be locked in an position ofits movement about its pivota axis by the thumb nut and cli- 16".

The upper end of the bag which is formed with an opening for removingthe dust, is

closed by a cla p 17 which is most desirably a spring 0 mp" formed asshown in Figs. 1 and 1 of sheet spring metal to slide over the end ofthe bag and tightly grip or clamp it.

One of the pairs of running wheels is mounted so as to be verticallyadjustable for raising and lowering the nozzle with relation to thesurface to be cleaned, and also for adjusting the brush with relation tothe surface to be cleaned when it is in its depressed or operativeposition. In the construction shown, the front running wheels 13 and 14are so mounted, being carried by a bent axle rod 19 which is mounted toturn in bearings 20 formed on the rear side of the nozzle, and held inthe bearings by clips 20 and screws 20", and which has beyond thebearings rearwardl extending portions 19, from which exten outwardlybent ends on which the running wheels are mounted. The portions 19 ofthe axle rod thus form pivoted supporting brackets for the wheels. Forcontrolling and determin ing the position of the wheels and thereby dthe brush, a cam lever 21 is pivoted on a lug 22 extending from thenozzle and having its cam face formed with a lurality of flattenedbearing portions or aces 23, 24 and 25 adapted to bear against one ofthe rearwardly extending portions of the axle rod or supporting brackets19, said bearing faces being at diflerent distances radially from thepivotal axis of the cam lever. When the cam lever is in the positionshown in Fig. 5, with the bearing face 23 bearing against the nozzle rodand limiting the upward movement of the wheels, the wheels will be intheir highest position relatively to the nozzle and the nozzle will bein its lowest position, in which most desirably its lips are in orslightly above the normal plane of the surface to be cleaned. B turningthe cam lever to bring its face 24 1n contact with axle rod 19 thenozzle is raised to an intermediate position, and by further turning thecam lever to bring its face 25 into engagement with the axle rod thewheels are thrown farther down relatively to the nozzle, and the nozzleis thereby raised to the highest of the three positions of ad'ustmentprovided by the means shown. he cam ever is so formed and positionedthat it may be conveniently operated by the foot of the operator, so asto avoid the necessity 'of bendin over to effect the desired adjustmentof t e nozzle. It is frictionally held against free turnin movement, andin addition by reason 0 its flat engaging faces against which theressure is exerted perpendicularly it tends to remain in any one of itsthree positions'to which it has been moved. The rear wheels 15 may bemounted upon a wire axle bent as shown in Fig. 3, and attached to thecasing by the screw 15, the tie clip 15' and the scr w 15 assing throughthe tie clip and into the caslng. I Mounted within the mouth of thenozzle 12 1s a thread disturbing member 30 which, n order to secure allthe advantages of the mvention, should be of such character as to erm1tthe passage of air through it. S uc member may be of any suitablematerial and form, but I find it best, instead of using a strip orstrips of felt or rubber or other suitable material with a slitted orserrated edge, to use a brush, as shown, which extends longitudinally ofthe nozzle. This brush 30 or other disturbing member is adustablymounted so that it may be moved downward to project slightly below theplane of the nozzle lips to frictionall engage the carpet or othersurface eing cleaned and disturb and loosen threads, lint and otherfibrous or other material which tends to stick to the carpet and resistthe action of a cleaning current of air when not disturbed by somemechanicall acting means. To most efiiciently per orm this work thedisturbing member or brush should make good brushing contact with thesurface or nap of the carpet, but should not press down too hard on thenap, as too great pressure would force threads, lint etc., into the nap,increase the labor of running the machine and possibly injure thecarpet. The brush is mounted, as shown, close to one of the walls of thenozzle in such manner that it may be moved vertically into and out ofoperative position, being for this purpose held in position b verticalstuds 31 which extend downwar from lugs formed in the nozzle, such studspassing freely through holes in the back of the brush and having headswhich limit the downward. movement of the brush, permitting it to have alimited vertical movement between a lower osition in which the o cratingedge of the brush rojects a suita le distance below the noz e lifis andan upper fposition in which the brus does not inter ere with or preventsealing contact of the nozzle li s with the carpet or other surfacebeing 0 eaned. The guiding and supporting studs 31 are desirabl screwstuds, being thus readily adjustab e for slightly varyin the operativeposition of the brush and inge endentl ad ustable for alining the bruswith t e nozzle lips.

For pressing the brush down into its operative position, there isprovided in the constructlon shown a short shaft 32 which has an endbearing in the front nozzle wall and extends across the nozzle throughthe rear wall and carries outside the nozzle an o erating arm 33, bentat its outer end as s own, the bent portion being formed to contact withthe casing 12 in extreme positions. and acts as a stop. This form oflever arm and its position'are such that it may be conveniently operatedby the foot, and the casing 12 acts as a guide to the foot. The shaft 32carries withm the nozzle a short arm or stud 35 which is adapted toengage the back of the brush between the supporting and guiding studs 31and, when the shaft 32 is turned, to force the brush down into operativeposition. When thus forced down by the turning of the shaft 32, theposition of the brush and its horizontal alinement with the nozzle lipsis determined by its coming into engagement with the heads on the studs31, so that the proper positioning of the brush is not affected by thefact that the arm 35 engages it only at a single point or that suchpoint of engagement is nearer one end of the brush than the other. Thisarrangement permits of the use of simple brush controlling meanspositioned for convenient access by the operator. The brush enga 5 arm35 is most desirably of such lengt t at when it has moved the brush downinto operative osition, this arm may spring the backo the brush somewhatand go slightly past the vertical, so that, the operating arm 33 hav"then come into en agement with the nozzle neck or other suita le stop,the brush will be locked in operative position. The brush is easilyremoved by simply removing" the screws 31. In the present instance arm35 is shown as beinglformed as an inte al' part of a sleeve 36 w ichfits over shaf 32 and is fastened thereto by a set-screw.

The operating arm 33 extends from the shaft in the direction opposite tothat of the brush engagin arm or stud 35, so that the brush is move downinto operative osition by upward movement of arm 33. T is is ofadvantage since the operation of throwing the arm 33 upward exerts aslight lifting action on the nozzle, thus lightenlng the operation ofmovin the brush down into operative position. f the lever 33 werearranged so as to move the brush down by a downward movement of thelever, then the pressure exerted in o eratin the lever to project thebrush would be ad ed to the weight of the cleaner, requiring theexertion of more power to move the brush into operative osition, and atthe same time placing an un ue pressure on the brush, which might injureit. It will be noted that the operating arms 33 and 35 have noconnection with the brush which interfere with the easy removal of thebrush.

Fig. 4 shows the position of the brush and the brush operating meanswhen the brush has been pushed down into operative position. When thelever 33 is thrown over and down from this position to move the arm 35up to release the brush, the bent end of the arm will contact with thecasin and act as a suitable stop. When the brus is thus released,it maybe left free to move upward under pressure of the carpet or othersurface being cleaned against the lower edge of the brush, the brushthen bbing free to rest under its own weight on the surface to becleaned. This does not interfere with the desired operation of thecleaning nozzle with its lips in close or sealing contact with thesurface being cleaned, but is found to be an advantage, as the li htfrictional disturbance of the nap of t e carpet b the brush aids in theremoval of dust and other contained dirt. It is, however, sometimesdesirable to provide means for preventing even such light pressure ofthebrush a ainst the surface being cleaned and for hol g it in its upermost or inoperative position. A suita e spring, tending to move thebrush upward, serves such purpose, and in Fig. 2 o the drawings there isshown for this purpose a spiral s ring 40 having its lower end connectedto t e back of the brush and its upper end to a wire rod 41 which passesthrough'an openin 42 in the upper wall of the nozzle 12 and y which thespring 40 may be placed under tension by pulling up on the wire until anenlargement or stop 43 on the wire is drawn throu h the opening and"engaged with a notched cover 44 pivotall attached to the nozzle casing,and which cover normally closes the openin By releasing the wire,ermittin it to fa 1 down to the position s own in ig. 2, the tension ofthe spring is released and the operation of the brush is as thoughqnospring were provided.

-'When the brush is in operative position, as shown in Fig. 4 itoperates because of its position, closely a 'acent to the front nozzlewall and lip to hold the carpet slightly away from and prevent itscoming .in close contact with this nozzle lip while allowing contact ofthe carpet with the rear lip of the nozzle, thereby causin a stronginrush of air under the action 0 the fan against the surface of thecarpet and beneath the front nozzle lip, which surface cleaning currentin conjunction with the disturbin action of the brush is highlyeflicient in ta ing from the surface of the carpet all surface litter,including threads, lint and other fibres which tend to stick to thesurface. Having the brush positioned closely adjacent to one of thenozzle lips is furthermore of advantage because a wider free passagebetween the brush and the other nozzle lip is left than is the casewhere the brush is placed midway between the nozzle lips, and especiallybecause with the brush in this position the inrushing current of airmust ass largely through and beneath the brush. V Vith the brush locatedmidway between the nozzle lips, the inrushing air passes up on each sideof the brush and there is very little if any current passing through thebrush or past its engaging edge or face, with the result that the brushis apt to become uickl more or less clogged up with t rea etc. taken upfrom the surface of the carpet.

With the brush located closelly adjacent to one of the nozzle lips, inaccor ance with the resent invention, the rush of air through the brushand past its bottom edge largely avoids this trouble by carrying thethreads, etc. away from the brush and up through the nozzle passage.-

I find it of some advantage to provide the brush with one or morerunners o erated with the brush to extend slightly be ow the plane ofthe nozzle lips when the brush is 111 operative position and to moveupward with the upward movement of the brush. Ordinarily two suchrunners, one at each end of the brush, give good results, and such anarrangement is shown in the drawings, in which the runners 45 extenddownward from the ends of the back of the brush. These runners bybearing against the carpet when the brush is in operative positlon causea somewhat more pronounced draft passage to be maintained between thenozzle lip and the carpet at and near the ends of the brush, for thepassage of the desired surface cleaning current of air. The runners aredesirably extended backward toward the lip of the nozzle from which thebrush is spaced away, so that there may also be some holding of thecarpet away from this lip of the nozzle toward the "ends of the nozzle,so that at the ends of the. nozzle a surface cleaning current of air mayflow in from both front and rear and also from the ends. Such entranceof air at the ends of the nozzle is found to be of advanta e inproviding an inward sweep of the air over the carpet from the ends ofthe nozzle toward the central uptake passage. These runners also operateto secure easier runnlng of the means cleaner by lessening somewhat thepressure of the carpet against the end portions of the brush.

The runners are formed with upwardly extending portions which areattached to and form the ends of the brush back 72, as shown in Fi 11.The end pieces thus provided on t e brush serve to support and guide thebrush on the studs 31.

When the brush is not set down into operative position, the car et isfree to make contact with both lips othe nozzle, and will be sucked upto the nozzle lips as shown in Fig. 4 when the nozzle is adwsted tostand slightly, above the normal lane of the surface of the carpet,provi ed the carpet is not too heavy and still to be so lifted.

In operating the cleaner on thick or heavy carpet with the brush inoperative position, the nozzle adjusting lever 21 will usually be set toposition the nozzle in its uppermost position, and for thin carpets orbare floors the nozzle will be ad'usted usually to ts intermediateosition. en the brush is in its inoperative position, the nozzle willusually be adjusted to its intermediate position for thickcarpets and inits lower position for thin carpets or for cleaning uncar eted floors.

find that to obtain results it is necessary to position the brush withconsiderable precision with relation to the surface being cleaned, andthe usual two-position ad'ustment of the nozzle found in suction ceaners of this type is not suflicient to 've the best results on allthicknesses and c aracter of carpet. With the three-position adjustingmeans shown, however, I am able to position both the nozzle and thebrush, so as to give the proper brushing contact with the surface or napof the carpet to do the most effective work.

It is desirable to provide for a free 0 en passage for the dischar 'ofair and ust from the discharge con uit 18 into the receptacle or bag 17at all times when the cleaner is in operation, and at the same time toprovide against the dust and other matter rentering the fan from the bagwhen the fan is not running, and interfere with freedom of movement ofthe bag under all movements of the operating handle. To accom lish thisI provide a valve formed of a s ort piece of flexible fabric 50 which issecured to an annular fitting 51 secured to the lower end of the dustreceptacle and which has locking engagement with the conduit '18. Asseen in ig. 10 the end of this piece of fabric is secured to and extendsabout half way around the upper part of the annular fittin 51, so as tobe of the form of a half tube a ment the fitting. As the fabric isrelative y of light weight, it is blown up to about the position shownby the full lines in Fig. 1 when the fan starts running, leaving a freeand unobstructed passage from the dischar e conduit 18 into the recetacle and when t e fan stops, the fabric alls as indicated by the dottedline in Fi 1 and closes the passage into the condult, effectivelypreventing the return of dirt or dust from the bag into the conduit.

The upper or'hand end of the handle rod is provided with a hollowcylindrical grip or handle piece 60 of fiber or other insulatingmaterial secured by screws 61 to a bent ferrule 62 which may be of metalor other suitable material into which the end of the handle rod 16extends and is secured, as by screws, as shown. The 'ferrule is bent sothat the grip 60 will extend at a suitable angle to the handle rod, andis hollow to receive the electrical conductors. A conductor cable 63 forsuppl ing current to the motor extends from .a p ug 63 detachablyattached to the casing 11 and having electrical connections to the motorupward along the handle rod, being housed in a groove in the under sideof the rod, and from the upper end of the handle rod the cable connectsthrough a controlling snap switch 64 to a cable 65 leading off tothesource of supply. The controlling switch 64 is mounted within the fiberhandle 60, and its rotating member 66 has a threaded connection to aninsulating piece 67 which may be termed the switc button, and whichforms the end of the handle grip and is desirably of substantially hemisherical form as shown and of slightly less diameter than the, diameterof the ferrule 60 so that when operatin the cleaner, pushing it back andforth on t e floor, there is little liability of accidentally turningthe switch button 67 such as might be the case if this button were ofthe same or larger diameter than the handle 60. This forms a veryconvenient switch operating means easily operated by the hand whichgrips the handle 60.

A coiled supporting spring 68 is provided as a guard for the cable 65where 16 enters the ferrule to support the cable and prevent its beingsharply bent and injured. This coiled guard spring may be merely forcedinto a hole in the ferrule 62'through which the cable 65 is led off tothe source of supply, being held in place by the expansion of the endcoils in the opening.

The brush shown in Figs. 2 and 3 may be most simply and referably formedin the manner lllustrated in Figs. 7, 8 and 9. The bristles 70 are engaed between wires 71 twisted to ether spira the bristles extendingradiiilly outward rom the wires to form, as shown by Figs. 7 and 8, acylindrical brush such as is commonly known as a chimney brush, forcleaning glass chimneys, bottles, etc. The bristles are then separatedalong one side and bent over and together as shown in Fig. 9; and ametal channel back vided very simply and of a small number of parts atminimum expense, a brush which is well adapted for the purpose.

It is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to theexact construction, arrangement and combination of parts shown and towhich the foregoing description has been largel confined, but that itincludes changes an modifications thereof within the claims, and thatparts of the apparatus claimed ma be used in combination with otherparts di ering from those shown or in cleaners of other types andconstruc tion.

What is claimed is:

1. The combination. with a suction cleaning nozzle having lips which lieall in the same plane, of a rigid, non-rotatable threaddisturbing memberwithin the nozzle adjacent one of its longitudinal ed es, meanssupporting said member where y it may have a limited amount of verticalmovement, means operable from outside the noz zle for forcing saidmember to its lowermost position and rigidly holding it there, meanslocated in the nozzle which is movable with said member to a positionwhere it projects sli 'htly beyond the plane of the nozzle lips anserves to hold the fabric being cleaned from sealing en agement with onelip of the cleaner 'nozz e, rollers for supporting said nozzle in spacedrelation to the surface to be cleaned, and means for adjusting saidrollers to bring the nozzle toward and away from the surface to becleaned.

2. The combination with a suction cleaning nozzle having lips which alllie in the same plane, of a rigid. non-rotatable threaddisturbing memberwithin the nozzle adjacent one edge thereof. means supporting saidmember whereby it may have -a limited amount of vertical movement, meansoperable from outside the nozzle for forcing said member to itslowermost position and posi-- tively holding it there, runners locatedin the nozzle adjacent the ends of said member, said runners beingmovable with said member to positions where they project slightly beyondthe plane of the nozzle lips and serve to hold the fabric being cleanedfrom sealing engagement with one lip of the cleaning nozzle. rollers forsupporting said nozzle in spaced relation to the surface to be cleaned,and means for adjusting said rollers to bring the nozzle toward and awayfrom the surface to be cleaned.

3. The combination with a suction cleaning nozzle of a thread-disturbingmember.

her whereby it may have a limited amount of vertical movement, sprinmeans connected to said member whi biases it to its uppermost position,and means operable from outside the nozzle for forcing said member toits lowermost position against the action of said spring means.

4. The combination with a suction cleaning nozzle, of athread-disturbing member mounted within the nozzle and movable into andout i of operative position, 'operatin means for moving and holding thethrea disturbing member down ,in operative position, a spring forraising the thread-disturbing member when it is released by saidoperating means, and means for adjusting said spring to make itoperative or inoperative as desired, the thread-disturbing member beingfree to fall or to be moved upward by on agement with the surface beingcleanef when .the spring is inoperative.

5. The eombination with a suction clean- 1 nozzle, of athread-disturbing member W1 'n the nozzle mounted to move up roximatelyparallel to the side of the nozz e into and out of o rative position,lowerspaced stops for limlt' the downward movement of thethreadisturbing member, upper spaced stops for limiting the upwardmovement of the thread-disturbing member, 0 erating means adapted toengage the threa distur ing member between said stops to force it downinto operative position against the lower stops,-and a spring connectedto the thread-disturbing member between the stops to lift it up a ainstthe upper stops when released by sai o erating means.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of twosubscribing witnesses.

WILLIAM W. ROSENFIELD.

Witnesses:

A; L. KENT, RUDOLPH Rmon.

It is herebsr certified that in Letters Patent No. 1,348,585, grsntedAugust 3, 1920, upon the application of William W. Roseiifield, of NewYork, N. Y., for an improvement in Suction-Cleaners," errors ajipear inthe printed specification requiring correction as follovrsz Page 1, line78, for the word "stitch" reed switch; page 4, 1ine 95, after the word'obtain insert the words the but; and that the said Letters Patentshould be read with these corrections therein that the same may conformto the record of the case in the Patent Ofiiee.

Signed and sealed this 14th day of September, A. D., 1920.

M. H. COULSTQN, Acting Commissioner of Petunia.

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